This car was built entirely by myself in the basement of my home in Marlborough. I started in 1985 and finished it in 1989.

For the build, what parts came from where?

It's a long story but here goes: The frame was made from steel channel and body panels were hammered and shaped in my garage. The rear end was a cut-down 1927 Model T Ford with two wheel brakes (rear only). The front axles were custom made from steel tubing. I used 1933 Ford spindles. It has two leaf springs on the front and a single leaf transverse spring on the back and 12-inch wheels all around. The steering box is from a 1930 Franklin automobile and the motor is a 1937 Ford V-8 60 flathead and runs on gasoline. The radiator is made of brass. The whole car weighs about 900 pounds and will run 85 mph.

For people who are unfamiliar with this car, what defines a Midget race car?

Midget racing started in California and quickly spread across the country to the East. Midgets were scaled-down versions of the full-sized cars that raced on fairgrounds in this country from 1930-1940. These were true American race cars.

When were these cars most popular?

The peak time for Midget racing was from 1945-1949. They were very popular with the returning veterans coming back from the war and looking for a little excitement.

How did you get interested in these cars?

I grew up in Wayland and St. Ann's Church was next to Wayland Motors, which was the local Ford dealership. The service manager owned a Ford-powered Midget. As I came out of Sunday School one morning in 1946 I saw the Midget on a trailer in the used car lot. It had raced the night before and that #77 Midget was the first one I had ever seen. A few years later I got to see this same Midget race at Westboro Speedway and I knew then that I would get involved sooner or later.

Why do you like these cars?

American automotive history has a lot of fine hours. Midget racing has always been my favorite era.

What do you do with this car now?

I run this car with the Atlantic Coast Old Timers. This club, established in 1983 and dedicated to preserving vintage race cars, does the intermission shows at race tracks in New England, upstate New York, Connecticut and New Hampshire. For more information on the club go to www.acotnews.org. I run the car about 5-6 times a year.

What is it like racing these cars? How fast do they go?

Page 2 of 2 - Driving these cars is always a high and I've driven a lot of them over the years. This car will reach speeds of up to 85 mph but there are some that run 120-130 mph. Vintage racing is a scaled down version of racing as it once was. Speeds are now slower than what they were when they were originally raced.